Review: The Bleeding Tree at Southwark Playhouse

Monday, 3rd June 2024 at Southwark Playhouse, London

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

TW: Domestic violence

Reviewer: Charlotte Dawes

Unapologetic in its dark humour, The Bleeding Tree takes a unique look at the complex response to domestic violence and those who fall victim to it. 

Opening with a gunshot, a mother (Mariah Gale) and her two daughters (Elizabeth Dulau and Alexandra Jensen) stare eerily through the audience and into the distance. We learn that their expression of ambivalence stems from their involvement in the death of their long-time tormentor. Their rollercoaster of emotions is laid bare as we watch them come to terms with not only their actions but also those of their community.  

Jasmine Swan’s understated set design places us firmly in the Australian bush, but it is Ali Hunter’s dramatic lighting and Asaf Zohar’s intense sound design that lead the action. Writer Angus Cerini’s fast-paced dialogue allows the 60-minute piece to cover significant ground, with each actor bouncing off one another but never interrupting.

All three performances are remarkable. Dulau and Jensen masterfully convey both trauma and elation as they question what their mother ever saw in their abuser. Gale’s vacant yet strong portrayal particularly shines when posing the central question: why victims of domestic violence are so often ignored until the worst possible outcome. 

Directed by Sophie Drake, The Bleeding Tree will make you both laugh and stop you in your tracks. Audiences are left questioning whether they too are unknowingly, or perhaps worse, knowingly, complicit in staying silent.

The Bleeding Tree is at Southwark Playhouse until 22nd June 2024 – more information and tickets can be found here.